Su Ling turned his head away. He didn’t want to see Gu Qingyuan. Seeing her made him afraid, his mind filled with nothing but images of her threatening to cut off his legs. He really didn’t want to lose his legs—not just because he wouldn’t be able to escape, but because if his legs were cut off, he would truly have no choice but to depend on her.
He hated Gu Qingyuan. He even loathed her. She had poisoned him into silence, robbing him of his ability to speak forever. How could he not hate her? How could he not loathe her? Su Ling wiped his tears, turned his back to her, and stared out the window. His eyes were filled with nothing but confusion and fear for the future.
Suddenly, a large hand touched his forehead, forcibly turning his body around. Su Ling was forced to meet her gaze. His body tensed, and he swallowed nervously in fear, tears welling up in his eyes. Gu Qingyuan’s eyes were half-open, carrying the drowsiness of someone just waking up, her brow deeply furrowed.
“I told you, don’t move around! Hug me. I’m so sleepy. Let me sleep a little longer. It’s all your fault, you little thing—causing trouble in the middle of the night and keeping me from sleeping well.”
Su Ling slowly raised his arms and wrapped them around her. Her body was very hot, and something felt off. A flicker of worry crossed Su Ling’s eyes, but he quickly suppressed it. ‘Why should I care about her? It’d be better if she died—then I could escape!’
Su Ling pressed his body into Gu Qingyuan’s embrace. She was tall, and being held in her arms made him seem very small. Gu Qingyuan’s body was warm. At first, being held felt a little comfortable to Su Ling, but as her body temperature rose higher and higher, it started to become uncomfortable. He gritted his teeth, suppressed his fear, and slowly struggled out of her arms. Gu Qingyuan just furrowed her brow and reached out a hand to grab him, but in the end, she couldn’t catch him. She could only watch him with half-open eyes.
Su Ling met her gaze. His heart jolted, and he abruptly turned his head away. ‘What… was that look? That look in Gu Qingyuan’s eyes seemed to carry a hint of pleading, just like when I begged her. No, impossible. I must have seen it wrong. Definitely! Besides, what does she have to beg me for? I have nothing to give her.’
Watching her little thing walk away like that, Gu Qingyuan’s heart was filled with unwillingness. The thought of losing her little thing immediately sent a wave of panic through her heart. No, her little thing was hers. Hers. How could he leave her?!
Su Ling opened the door and went downstairs. He searched carefully through the living room, heading toward a place that looked like it stored things. He searched meticulously, opening every drawer and every cabinet. Finally, he found medicine in one of the drawers. Su Ling looked over the medications, found a few for clearing heat and detoxifying, and casually grabbed several pills. He didn’t care about dosage at all. After all, it wasn’t for him to eat. It’d be better if she ate too many and died! With that thought, he popped out two more capsules, then found a cup and poured himself some hot water.
Holding the warm water and medicine, Su Ling carefully returned to the room. Before he even reached the door, he heard a loud “bang,” like something heavy hitting the floor! Su Ling frowned slightly. ‘What is she up to now?’ He pushed the door open with his shoulder and saw Gu Qingyuan trying to sit up from the floor.
When Gu Qingyuan saw her little thing come in, her heart was delighted—luckily, he hadn’t run away. If he had run and she caught him, she’d make sure to torment him properly! At least he had some conscience, making her catch a bad cold like this. A smile curled at the corner of Gu Qingyuan’s mouth. She beckoned to her little thing with a wave of her finger.
Su Ling bit his lip but obediently walked over, knelt down, and handed her the medicine and water.
“You went to get me medicine?” Gu Qingyuan looked at him with hopeful eyes.
Su Ling nodded. Of course, he wasn’t genuinely trying to help her. He only got her medicine so that after she recovered from her cold, Gu Qingyuan would remember his kindness and not cut off his legs.
“Why didn’t you run? I’m very weak right now. I don’t have the strength to chase you. If you wanted to escape, it would be very easy for you.”
Su Ling bit his lip and lowered his head. It wasn’t that he hadn’t thought of running. But he was afraid of being caught again. The front gate was electrified—he couldn’t get past it. The surrounding walls were too high—he couldn’t climb them. There was simply no possibility of escape.
Gu Qingyuan didn’t mind that her little thing didn’t answer. She reached out and took the medicine from his hand. She looked at the pills in her palm. Some capsules, squeezed by her little thing’s sweaty hand, had already become deformed and softened. But she didn’t mind at all. She opened her mouth and tossed them in. The medicine, which she usually found unbearably bitter just thinking about it, barely had any bitterness in her mouth this time. She could even taste a faint sweetness.
A smile tugged at the corner of Gu Qingyuan’s mouth. She took the water from her little thing’s hand and took a sip. “Good job. It seems you’re starting to get a sense of being a cat.”
Su Ling glanced at her, then quickly looked away. He didn’t want to be a cat. He was a person. Even if he had cat ears and a tail, he truly wanted to be a human, not a cat or anything else.
“Are you hungry? If you are, there are some snacks in the cabinet by the bed. You can have some.”
Su Ling shook his head. He was a little hungry, but it wasn’t very obvious. Right now, what he really wanted to know was whether she would cut off his legs or not—not about eating.
“Alright. We’ll eat later, then.”
Gu Qingyuan’s burning hot fingers brushed across her little thing’s cheek, feeling his body tense up at her touch. This smile wasn’t like before. It was a genuine, happy smile from the heart.
“Help me to the bed. Stay with me and sleep a little longer, okay?”
Su Ling nodded and silently supported one of her arms. He was very thin and not very strong. It seemed like he was using all the strength he had, but he still couldn’t move her an inch.
Gu Qingyuan didn’t mind. Her little thing was just a support point. Using his body as leverage, she slowly pushed herself up from the floor.
The moment she sat up, Su Ling immediately felt the pressure. It felt like the bones in his shoulder were about to be crushed. But he didn’t dare let go. He could only bite his lip tightly, forcing himself to move his feet slowly, supporting her step by step as they walked to the bed.
Luckily, it was only two steps away. The moment Gu Qingyuan’s body left his, he instantly shed that heavy feeling.
Gu Qingyuan slowly adjusted her position, pulled back the blanket, and lay down. Once she was settled, she patted the spot beside her, signaling Su Ling to lie down too.
Su Ling didn’t refuse. He slowly pulled back the blanket and lay down, actively leaning against her body. He hoped that by doing this, she might really give up on cutting off his legs.
Seeing her little thing being so proactive, Gu Qingyuan’s heart was delighted. She couldn’t help but reach out and stroke her little thing’s tail!
This furry, soft tail felt so comfortable to touch. Su Ling bit his lip tightly, his body tense, an inexplicable flush rising to his cheeks.
His tail and ears were his most sensitive spots. Now, with her holding them in her hands like this, he completely lost control of his body. His heart pounded in chaotic panic. He could already guess what would happen next.
But he didn’t want to do that kind of thing. At least not now.